YLS Alums Filling Key Positions in Obama Administration

The list of Yale Law School graduates appointed to positions in the Obama administration continues to grow. Those positions include the top spots in the State Department and the Office of White House Counsel.

Department of StateOn January 21, 2009, Hillary Rodham Clinton ’73 was sworn in as the 67th U.S. Secretary of State. She joined the State Department after nearly four decades in public service as an advocate, attorney, First Lady, and Senator. Serving as Secretary Clinton’s adviser and assisting in the formulation and conduct of U.S. foreign policy is Jim Steinberg ’78, the new Deputy Secretary of State. Steinberg previously served as dean of the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas in Austin and vice president and director of Foreign Policy Studies at the Brookings Institution.

Hillary Clinton '73 is sworn in as U.S. Secretary of State as husband Bill Clinton '73 looks on. (State Dept. photo)

Office of White House CounselGregory Craig ’72 was appointed White House Counsel to the President. A close adviser to Obama during the campaign, Craig previously served as special counsel in the White House of President Bill Clinton and was lead attorney during Clinton’s 1998 impeachment proceedings. Craig was also a foreign policy advisor to Senator Edward Kennedy and to Secretary of State Madeleine Albright. Also appointed to the Office of White House Counsel were Ian Bassin ’06, Deputy Associate Counsel to the President; Karen Dunn ’06, Associate Counsel to the President; Caroline Krass ’93, Associate Counsel to the President for National Security Affairs; Jonathan Kravis ’04, Associate Counsel to the President; Rashad Hussain ’07, Deputy Associate Counsel to the President; Jason Green ’08, Deputy Associate Counsel to the President; and Neal Wolin ’88, Deputy Counsel to the President for Economic Policy and Deputy Assistant to the President.

Department of JusticeAt the Department of Justice, Stuart Delery ’93 was tapped to be Chief of Staff and Counselor to the Deputy Attorney General, Office of the Deputy Attorney General. Dawn Johnsen ’86 was appointed Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Counsel. Other Justice appointments include Neal Katyal ’95 as Principal Deputy Solicitor General, Office of the Solicitor General; Marty Lederman ’88, Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Office of Legal Counsel; and Tom Saenz ’91, Assistant Attorney General, Civil Rights Division.

Office of Management and Budget In the Office of Management and Budget, Robert Gordon ’98 was selected Associate Director for Education, Income Maintenance and Labor.

White House Office of Urban AffairsDerek Douglas ’98 was selected special assistant to the president for urban affairs in the newly-created White House Office of Urban Affairs.